…
A hush fell over the classroom, every student's gaze drawn to the solitary figure by the window. Toji seemed oblivious to the attention, his focus fixed on the world outside. He hadn't come to ANHS seeking companionship; his reasons were his own.
"Fushiguro-san?" Ichinose began, her voice gentle and carrying a hint of warmth. She took a step forward, a soft smile gracing her lips, ready to engage with him. But before she could continue, a sudden…
"Gooood morning, everyone!" A bright, almost musical voice cascaded into the classroom, drawing all eyes to the front door. Stepping inside with a genuinely charming smile was a woman who instantly lit up the room.
Likely in her late twenties, she carried herself with an easy confidence. Her light-brown hair, playfully curled at the ends, bounced just above her shoulders, with bangs artfully swept to the right. Striking purple eyes scanned the students, taking in the scene.
She wore a stylish pink top and a pencil skirt that hinted at a figure both slim and well-proportioned.
"Are~? Did I walk into the middle of something?" she chirped, her head tilting slightly as she immediately picked up on the heavy atmosphere.
Her gaze lingered for a moment on the few students still glancing towards that rather handsome boy in the corner.
"Honestly, first-day tension is one thing, but are you bullying Fushiguro-kun? This feels a bit much, don't you think?" she added with a slight pout, already comfortable enough to voice her observation openly.
"Ah, no, Sensei," Ichinose murmured, giving her head a quick, polite shake. Almost involuntarily, her gaze drifted again towards the boy by the window. He sat with an air of wanting to fade into the background, yet his very stillness seemed to draw the eye.
It wasn't shyness, she observed with a flicker of curiosity, but rather a deliberate walling-off. He seemed utterly indifferent to the social energy buzzing through the room, completely ignoring the occasional, shy glances some of the girls cast his way.
The second the classroom door slid open to admit the newcomer—likely the teacher, Ichinose noted—his attention snapped forward, instantly focused on the woman, dismissing everything else around him as irrelevant. He simply didn't seem inclined to waste a single moment bothering with his classmates.
"Alrighty then! Let's try that introduction again!" Hoshinomiya beamed, clapping her hands together lightly. "I'm your homeroom teacher for Class 1-B, Hoshinomiya Chie! You can call me Chie-sensei – much friendlier, don't you agree?" Her energy was infectious.
"Now, this school's a bit… unique. One thing to know right off the bat is that we don't switch classrooms each year. Nope! You're stuck with this room, and lucky you, you're stuck with me for the next three years!" She sighed dramatically, through her eyes sparkled with amusement. She appeared friendly.
"Means we'd better get along and get to know each other, right?" As she finished, maybe, just maybe, there was a quick, almost imperceptible wink directed towards Toji's corner before her expression settled back into professional warmth.
"Okay, first things first – the boring but necessary stuff," she announced, grabbing a stack of papers. "Like I said, this school has its quirks. These packets have all the special rules and the admission guide. Please try not to lose them on day one!" She handed the stack to the front row. "Pass these back, will you?"
A quiet rustle filled the room as the documents made their way from desk to desk, each student taking one.
The central premise of this school was that it was entirely different from all other Japanese high schools. All students were required to reside in dormitories located within the school premises. Except for special cases, such as studying abroad, students were forbidden from contacting the outside world.
Even contact with immediate family was forbidden without authorization, and leaving the school grounds without permission was strictly prohibited.
However, the campus offered many excellent facilities, boasting its own karaoke spot, theaters, cafe, boutique, and more, making the school resemble a small city rather than a town.
And the school's main distinguishing feature was its unique S-System.
As students finished reading the distributed materials, uneasy murmurs rippled through the class. Glances were exchanged – they'd known about the isolation from family, sure, but the full weight of the rules laid out on paper felt… unexpectedly strict. A shared sense of seriousness settled over them.
Most eyes, however, quickly became fixated on the section detailing the 'S System'. The concept seemed both intriguing and confusing. Ichinose visibly gathered herself, opening her mouth as if to ask a question about it, but Hoshinomiya-sensei, smoothly moved on before she could speak.
"Next up! Your official student IDs," Hoshinomiya announced, holding up a sleek-looking smartphone.
"Now, guard these with your lives, okay? Seriously." Her tone was firm for a moment, a flash of sternness beneath the surface, but that friendly smile immediately returned.
"This little baby," she patted the device affectionately, "is your key to everything on campus – accessing facilities, buying snacks from the store, you name it. Think of it like a super-powered school debit card."
She paused, leaning forward slightly over the lectern, her voice dropping conspiratorially.
"But," she emphasized, capturing everyone's undivided attention, "you need to be smart about the points loaded onto these. Because here at this school," her eyes sparkled mischievously,
"you can use points to buy… aaaanything." She drew the word out with a playful, knowing look.
"Well," she amended quickly with a light chuckle, "almost anything. Anything available on school grounds, naturally. Don't get any wild ideas. There are still some strict regulations."
With that, she began distributing the devices. Soon, every student held their own school-issued smartphone, which served as both their identification and their primary mode of communication within the isolated campus environment.
A moment of silence, then:
"Whoa! No way!" A startled exclamation broke the quiet from someone near the back.
"Seriously? Check your balance!" another student urged, tapping rapidly at their screen.
A buzz of hushed excitement and disbelief filled the air as phones lit up across the room.
""Ah, you've found the welcome present, I see?" Hoshinomiya-sensei chuckled, her smile widening. She'd clearly anticipated this reaction.
"That's right, take a look. You should each see a starting balance of 100,000 points." She tapped her own temple lightly. "Think of 1 point as exactly 1 yen. Easy peasy, right?"
"Using them is simple too," she continued breezily. "Just tap or swipe at the scanners you'll find everywhere. Honestly, it's foolproof, so don't stress about getting confused. Oh, and the best part? Don't worry about spending it all at once – you get a fresh deposit automatically on the first of every month! Like clockwork!"
Incredulous looks were still being exchanged. 100,000 yen a month? Just handed to them? It felt far too generous, almost suspicious. Students glanced towards their teacher, whispers starting to bubble up – surely there was a catch?
"Surprised by the hefty sum?" Hoshinomiya grinned, clearly enjoying their reaction.
"Don't be! This school invests heavily in talent, and every single one of you passed a very tough entrance exam to be here. That speaks volumes about your potential!" She seemed genuinely proud, puffing her chest out slightly. "Consider those points a direct reflection of the school's evaluation of your worth."
She let that sink in for a beat, watching their expressions shift from shock to contemplation.
"Now, how do you spend those points? Totally up to you. Go wild! Live it up! Just remember," her tone shifted to practical advice, "points vanish into thin air after graduation, and you can't exchange them for actual cash. So, trying to save them up? Pointless! Literally." She winked at her own pun.
"Feel free to transfer points to a friend if you're feeling generous," she added casually. "What you can't do," and here her smile tightened, becoming a playful but undeniably firm warning, "is try to bully or shake down your classmates for their points. Trust me, this school monitors that kind of thing very carefully, so don't even think about trying it!"
Despite the warning, nobody seemed offended. Her directness, mixed with her bright energy and friendly demeanor, was strangely refreshing. They found themselves liking this teacher who treated them like adults while still being approachable.
"Alright!" Hoshinomiya clapped her hands together again, signaling a shift.
"Alright! Any burning questions right this second? No? Okay then!" Hoshinomiya clapped her hands together once more, signaling the end of the formal introduction. The students seem to be satisfied with her explanation, and point system.
"Settle in, get comfortable in your new home away from home. After this homeroom session, you're free to explore or head back to your dorms until classes officially begin. And I truly hope," she paused, giving them one last warm smile, "that you all enjoy your time here as students!"
For just a fleeting moment, however, her usually effervescent tone seemed to dip, carrying a faint, almost imperceptible undertone of disappointment – or perhaps weary foresight? – though her cheerful expression remained flawlessly intact.
Her insightful gaze swept across the room one last time, lingering briefly on the charming, attentive girl in the middle rows, Ichinose, before flicking towards the corner.
There, the quiet boy, Toji, was already smoothly sliding the new smartphone into his pocket, his posture relaxed, seemingly detached and ready to leave the instant dismissal was given.
'Hmm, this year's batch might be interesting,' she mused silently, the smile never leaving her lips as the students began gathering their things.
××××
A/N: I tried to give Hoshinomiya Chie, the personality I think she would show on the first day. Cheerful and friendly. I hope you don't mind this short chapter, I was thinking to adding more but it would be too long, then I would need to break it down. So, I just decided to end it here.
I think you all will have the idea of Toji's personality with what has show so far, if you haven't, that's okay too.
Just small Spoiler: I don't plan to go this happy-go-Lucky MC, there are many such a Fanfiction where MC is like that. This isn't real Toji, just his heavenly restriction Physique, with some modifications I made.
You'll know his goal, just to letting you know they aren't grand.